Pod Insights Brick City Podcasts Words of Inspiration - Looking in the wrongplaces About this episode Send us Fan Mail Where is God actually working? In faithful small churches nobody notices. Through believers praying in obscurity. In missionaries serving without platforms. Through ordinary people loving their neighbors. In humble acts of obedience that don't trend on social media. That's where God's kingdom advances. That's where deliverance emerges.
Transcript 0:38 Speaker 00 Welcome to The Bible Speaks with your host, Elgin Kerelock. The Bible Speaks is a daily podcast dedicated to sharing the good news of Jesus Christ, rightly dividing the Word of Truth, and learning how to apply it to our daily lives. You may contact Elgin at the address given at the end of the broadcast, and now here's Elgin.
1:02 Speaker 01 I welcome you, in the name of Yeshua HaMashiach, to another edition of Words of Inspiration. This is our third episode in the Book of Micah. Today's episode is titled, "Looking in the Wrong Places," and we're discovering where God's deliverance actually comes from, and it's not where most people are searching. Our text is Micah, Chapter 5, Verse 2, and reading from the New International Version, it reads, "But you, Bethlehem Ephatha, you are small among the clans of Judah.
1:46 Speaker 01 Out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from old, from ancient times." Seven hundred years before Jesus was born, Micah told everyone they were looking in the wrong direction. So today, we're discovering why sometime God's solution comes from unexpected places.
2:14 Speaker 01 Let us pray.
2:16 Speaker 01 Father, forgive us for looking to human institutions for the salvation only you can provide. Open our eyes to see where you're actually working, not where we expect you to work. Help us trust that your deliverance comes in ways that serve our best interests and bring you glory. Teach us to stop searching for help in impressive places and recognize the promises of your faithfulness. In Jesus Christ's name we pray, amen. In today's uncertain times, people are looking to politics, economics, or technology to save us.
2:59 Speaker 01 Every election cycle promises transformation. Every market shift creates hope or panic. Every technological breakthrough is held as the answer to humanity's problems. We're desperately searching for deliverance from anxiety, division, and instability. But we're looking in the wrong places.
3:24 Speaker 01 When Micah prophesied, Judah was facing similar desperation. Assyria threatened invasion. Jerusalem, their capital, was very vulnerable. Everyone looked to Jerusalem for political alliances, military strength, and religious reform. Surely deliverance would come from their impressive center of government and worship.
3:51 Speaker 01 Then Micah drops verse 2.
3:54 Speaker 01 "But you Bethlehem, not Jerusalem, not the palace, not the temple, Bethlehem, which was small, insignificant, and easily overlooked."
4:09 Speaker 01 God's deliverance would emerge from obscurity and not prominence. Why? Because God's deliverance comes from where we're not looking. We scan the horizon for impressive institutions, influential leaders, and powerful movement. But God sends a baby born in a stable. We expect political revolution. God sends spiritual transformation. We look for military might, and God provided a servant king. This isn't God being difficult, it's God being wise.
4:50 Speaker 01 We cannot place our faith in institutions made by human hands. History proves this. Every empire falls. Every political system eventually corrupts. Every economic theory has limits. Every technology creates new problems while solving others. Psalm 146 and 3 warns, "Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help." Human institutions, no matter how impressive, cannot provide ultimate deliverance. They're built by flawed people with limited wisdom and mixed motives.
5:35 Speaker 01 We must trust God to bring deliverance in a manner that not only is in our best interest, but brings Him glory. This is crucial. God's methods aren't just about solving our problems, they're about revealing His character. When deliverance comes from Bethlehem instead of Jerusalem, from a manger instead of a palace, from humility instead of power, no one can claim credit except God. As we have seen in our studies of Micah, giving man power and influence can cause arrogance and oppression. Chapter 2 exposed midnight schemers using power to exploit.
6:19 Speaker 01 Chapter 3 condemned religious leaders monetizing ministry. Power in human hands tends toward corruption. Even good people struggle with authority. That's why God rarely delivers through impressive human institutions.
6:37 Speaker 01 So God uses the obscure to confound the wise. 1 Corinthians 1:27 explains his strategy. It reads, "But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise, and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty." A shepherd boy defeats a giant. A virgin bursts a Messiah. A crucified carpenter saves the world. None of it makes worldly sense. All of it brings God glory. And his solutions are always better than anything we could create on earth.
7:23 Speaker 01 We design systems that benefit some while exploiting others. God designs redemption that transforms everyone. We build institutions that eventually crumble. God establishes a kingdom that cannot be shaken. We create temporary fixes. God provides eternal solutions. Matthew 2, verses 1 through 6, shows the fulfillment. When wise men asked Haran where to find a newborn king, religious leaders immediately quoted Micah 5:2. "In Bethlehem of Judea." They knew the prophecy.
8:08 Speaker 01 They understood God's pattern. Deliverance comes from unexpected places.
8:15 Speaker 01 So stop looking to Washington for salvation. Stop expecting Wall Street to provide security. Stop thinking technology will fix what's broken in humanity. These aren't bad things. They're just insufficient things. They're Jerusalem when God is working in Bethlehem. Where is God actually working? In faithful small churches. Through believers praying in obscurity. In missionaries serving without platform. Through ordinary people loving their neighbors. In humble acts of obedience that don't trend on social media. That's where God's kingdom advances. That's where deliverance emerges.
9:03 Speaker 01 Proverbs 21 and 31 declares, "The horse is prepared against a day of battle, but safety is of the Lord." Prepare all you want, build impressive institutions, develop sophisticated systems, but understand, safety, deliverance, and salvation all comes from the Lord, and He specializes in shoring up where you're not looking, using people you'd overlook in ways that bring Him glory.
9:38 Speaker 01 Stop searching impressive places. Start noticing obscure faithfulness. God's deliverance is coming from Bethlehem, not Jerusalem. And if you're only watching Jerusalem, you'll miss it entirely. Heavenly Father, forgive us for looking to human institutions for what only You can provide. We confess we've placed faith in politics, economics, and technology rather than trusting You. Open our eyes to see where You're actually working in humble places through ordinary people in ways we never expect. Help us to stop looking to Jerusalem
10:24 Speaker 01 and start noticing Bethlehem. In Jesus Christ's name we pray. Amen. I thank You for spending time with me on today, and I look forward to our time together on tomorrow. Until then, God bless.
10:47 Speaker 00 The Bible Speaks is sponsored by C Squared Realty and New Gen Construction Group to help spread the gospel to the corners of the earth. If anything you've heard poured into your life, please share it with someone. You can find The Bible Speaks on Spotify, Amazon Music, Deezer, and many more. Follow us on YouTube at The Bible Speaks Online. You may contact Elgin at P O Box 5582, Ocala, Florida 34478, or by email at [email protected] .
Previous Words of Inspiration - Religious Hypocrisy Next Words of Inspiration - What God expects from you Page updated November 13, 2026 · transcript and summary are machine-generated
